The Christendom Players returned to the stage this past weekend with performances of Oscar Wilde’s renowned play The Importance of Being Earnest, marking the fourth time they have taken on Wilde’s theatrical work. Following on the heels of last spring’s magical performance of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, the Players delivered a record-setting five shows over the course of the weekend, with performances by both the original cast and a cast of talented understudies. Incredible acting from the Players brought the famously witty comedy to life for wildly enthusiastic audiences.
Alumna and veteran Elizabeth Foeckler ‘12, directing her thirteenth show with the Christendom Players, praised the cast, the smallest in the history of the Christendom Players, for their creativity and chemistry.
“Oscar Wilde is so clever, and so I think the students really enjoyed getting to dive deep into this play, because the more you read it, the more wit and humor you understand. I think they also appreciated the fact that they were able to form such a tight bond as a small cast. It’s something they’re always going to have with them,” Foeckler said. “The small cast really helped to facilitate good chemistry between actors. They were able to very quickly start to mesh and try new things together and bounce creative ideas off of each other, which helped to foster an entertaining show.”
The Christendom Players captivated audiences in every performance with phenomenal acting, memorable dialogue, and sidesplitting comedy. Once again, the Players offered a Sunday matinee show, following the success of Cinderella’s matinee performance in the spring, which was the first matinee show in a decade. The understudy cast was also given the opportunity to perform in their own matinee show on Saturday.
“The understudy show was such a fun addition to the process. As far as I’m aware, the Players have never done an understudy show before, especially since we’ve only started seriously using understudies in the last five years,” Foeckler shared. “These understudies worked so hard, and especially since the understudies are typically drawn from the ensemble, and there isn’t an ensemble in this show, I really wanted to give them an opportunity to showcase their hard work, since without the understudy performance, many of them would not have been able to act before an audience at all. It was a lot of fun to see the slightly different ways the understudies would portray the roles.”
For Maryann Casey, who was part of both Cinderella and Little Women, starring as Cecily Cardew was an incredibly special experience from start to finish.
“The performances at Christendom are so special because they allow for a very personal directing style during the lead up to the shows, and also create one of the most tight-knit casts you will be a part of. The shows allow for a close bond to develop between students in different classes and really bring the whole cast together into one family, which is one of the best experiences,” said Casey. “My experience playing Cecily was a dream come true. The Importance of Being Earnest has been one of my favorite plays since high school, and Cecily has always been a character that has fascinated me as she can be portrayed in many different ways, and it was an amazing opportunity to be able to come up with a unique way of playing her character while staying true to the traditional romantic character she is.”
The Christendom Players, a student-run club, perform a play each fall and a musical each spring. In the past, the group has performed Cinderella, The Actor, Little Women, Les Misérables, Murder on the Nile, The Music Man, The Winter’s Tale, and other elaborate productions. Although Christendom does not offer a performing arts major, many students include acting as part of their extracurricular pursuits during college. The resulting showcase of talent – both musical and theatrical – draws students from every discipline, resulting in rich theatrical productions each academic year.
Contributed by Bridget Palm ’28.